Derk Richardson interviews composer and bassist John Lindberg, recorded at the Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco on November 14, 2009, as part of the ROVA:Arts Improv 21 series of informances. John Lindberg is a New York based musician who was in the Bay Area on a temporary teaching stint at the California at Cal Arts. This informal discussion begins with Lindberg performing “Fiddlesticks,” a work that he has been part of his solo double bass repertoire for about 20 years. LIndberg then describes the thought process, or rather lack of one, that is the hallmark of his performance practice. According to Lindberg, he tries to be in a state beyond thought when playing, or more precisely, when he is being played by the music. It has been his experience that thinking about what you are playing presents an extra layer of intentionality that can often get in the way of the moment, allowing it to slip away. However, Lindberg is clear that he typically does start with some initial intent of cerebral conception, rather than simply engaging in free improvisation. There is an underlying awareness in his playing, he just tries not to analyze or think during the actual performance of a piece. Lindberg also introduces and discusses with the audience, a 20 minute long music-driven documentary, or moving picture scrapbook, called “Bass Walk,” (unfortunately not included in this program), and talks about a couple of his then current collaborations in order to give a general sense of the wide range of his musical interests. These include the psychedelic experimental jam band, The Blob, with guitarist Ted Orr and drummer Harvey Sorgen, as well as his JazzHop Revolution project with rapper Rahman Jamaal. This delightful program ends with another solo bass composition, “Sophie’s Lullaby.”

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